Culled from our Instructional Manuals: S.A.F.E™ for YOU

TIP 67                                                

“The sexual abuse and exploitation of children is one of the most vicious crimes conceivable, a violation of mankind’s most basic duty to protect the innocent.”

James T. WALSH

Sure you are doing great today, my precious young ones. I am sure we are making progress in this our important journey to the Promised Land of Personal Safety and Self-Protection.

We have spent some time, discussing foundational issues, rights and the laws, which provides for them, gender rights and rights of those living with one form of disability or the other.

Now, I think it is time to dedicate some quality time to what really constitutes an abuse. If you must be involved in your Personal Safety and Self-Protection, you must know what to protect yourself against. If you must know what to protect yourself against, you must know what constitute abuse in the eye of the law and what constitute danger. Against danger, you need Personal Safety and for Abuse, you need Self-Protection.

Today, I begin with Sexual Abuse. Sexual abuse is the involvement of a child in sexual activity that he or she does not fully comprehend or unable to give informed consent to, or for which the child is not developmentally prepared and cannot give consent.

Child Sexual Abuse is evidenced by this activity between a child and an adult or another child who by age or development is in a relationship of RESPONSIBILITY, TRUST OR POWER, the activity being INTENDED to GRATIFY or SATISFY the needs of the other person.

This may include but is not limited to:

• The inducement or coercion of a child to engage in any unlawful sexual activity
• The use of child in prostitution or other unlawful sexual practices.
• The use of children in pornographic performances and materials.
• Everything from obscene exposure to touching the genitals in a sexual way

According to the Report on Violence Against Children in Nigeria 2014, Sexual Violence include all forms of sexual abuse and exploitation. This encompasses a range of acts, including:

• Unwanted completed sex acts (i.e., rape),
• Attempted non-consensual sex acts
• Abusive sexual contact (i.e., unwanted touching),
• Pressured sex (such as through threats or tricks)

All of these are often perpetrated ‘by any person regardless of their relationship to the child experiencing the violence, in any setting.’

I think you have enough to digest today. Let me draw the curtain and allow you to digest this for the purpose of self-protection. Do have an INSPIRED day.

The THINK Factor

How would you describe sexual abuse in your own words from what we have discussed so far? Take time to really reflect and share your thoughts in your S.A.F.E™ 4 YOU Personal Journal.